Whether very meticulously executed or roughly sketched, both portrait and self-portrait represent the exploration of a physiognomy, an attitude, an expression, a state of mind. If this kind of depiction can be used as a formal practice for the artist, it can also give clues on a story, a human connection, a period, a taste or a social status, through the choice of the model and of its setting. Bridge between artist, model, and beholder, it can deliver a political or ideological discourse, or open a window on people’s privacy: it can therefore be a choice medium for expressing love, desire, and friendship, as well as pain and death. Throughout the different sections of the exhibition, the many aspects of this artistic genre will be explored: funerary portraits, animal portraits, children’s portraits, and self-portraits. The works of a hundred or so artists, produced over four centuries, will thus reveal the vitality, richness, and expressive power of the portrait and self-portrait genre.